Qiao Zhao took two steps back to increase the distance between them, smiling brightly as she said, “There is no Seven-Day Heartbreak Powder, so naturally there’s no antidote either.”

Jiang Yuanchao felt his heart suddenly skip a beat, staring intently at Qiao Zhao: “You didn’t poison me with a deadly toxin?”

Qiao Zhao raised her eyebrows: “Does Lord Jiang not believe me?”

“I naturally believe you.” Ripples surged in Jiang Yuanchao’s eyes, finally settling into the calm depths of a deep pool as he said meaningfully, “Until we meet again.”

After speaking, he looked toward Shao Mingyuan, who stood beside Qiao Zhao: “The Marquis must take good care of Miss Li.”

“Lord Jiang need not concern himself.”

Jiang Yuanchao chuckled softly, then departed with his men in high spirits.

“Finally, they’re gone. With them here, it was inconvenient to say anything.” Chen Guang, still wrapped in bandages, grinned as he hooked his arm around Ye Luo’s shoulder, “Ye Luo, quickly tell me, when did you get a brother named Ye Feng?”

“Talkative.” Shao Mingyuan glanced at Chen Guang, then walked over to Censor Xing with a very courteous attitude: “Lord Xing, I’ll take you to meet someone.”

The person Shao Mingyuan brought Censor Xing to meet was precisely the personal guard Ye Feng, who had boarded the ship with Ye Luo two days prior.

Censor Xing looked at the sleeping guard with a puzzled expression.

“Lord Xing, please look carefully.” Shao Mingyuan reminded him.

Censor Xing examined the guard closely, suddenly frowning as he stepped forward and lifted the guard’s hair that had fallen across his forehead.

The guard’s ears had full contours with large, thick earlobes. Censor Xing trembled as he turned the guard’s left ear to look behind it, and was shocked to see a small flesh tag.

Censor Xing stumbled backward repeatedly, his face filled with horror as he suddenly looked at Shao Mingyuan.

Shao Mingyuan maintained his calm expression and smiled at Censor Xing.

“He is Xing Wuyang?” Censor Xing pointed at the sleeping guard on the bed.

Chen Guang, standing in the corner, pressed his palm to his forehead and muttered, “Xing Wuyang? Really can’t tell – such a famous general looks so unremarkable.”

“Marquis, is he Xing Wuyang?” Censor Xing couldn’t help but ask again.

Shao Mingyuan nodded: “Lord Xing has not mistaken him. He is indeed the anti-pirate general Xing Wuyang, personally appointed by His Current Majesty.”

“This beast!” Censor Xing grabbed the teacup from the table and hurled it toward Xing Wuyang’s face.

Shao Mingyuan deftly caught the teacup, his smile as composed as the calm river surface at this moment: “Lord Xing, don’t be hasty. Now that Xing Wuyang is in our hands, receiving his due punishment is just a matter of time.”

Censor Xing stared fixedly at the disguised Xing Wuyang, his lips trembling violently before finally sighing: “The people of Fudong have been harmed by this beast!”

Shao Mingyuan cupped his hands toward Censor Xing: “Therefore, after returning to the capital, we must trouble Lord Xing.”

By directly abducting Xing Wuyang and bringing him back to the capital, he was acting first and reporting later. Regardless of how great Xing Wuyang’s crimes were, he couldn’t escape the Emperor’s punishment.

However, he had no choice but to do this.

Xing Wuyang had covered the sky with one hand in Fudong for many years, his foundations too deep. Even though they possessed solid evidence of Xing Wuyang colluding with pirates and causing civil unrest and military mutiny, dealing with Xing Wuyang would still be a headache for the Emperor.

The mountains are high, and the Emperor is far away – if the Emperor issued an edict to strip Xing Wuyang of his military authority and return to the capital to confess his crimes, it would very likely force Xing Wuyang into direct rebellion.

At that time, let alone Emperor Mingkang, who was famously unwilling to stir up trouble, any emperor would be wary. This way, dealing with Xing Wuyang would be delayed indefinitely, and the Qiao family fire case couldn’t be overturned in time.

He knew that Zhaozhao was determined to succeed in this southern journey, so how could he bear to disappoint her? Only by acting first and bringing Xing Wuyang back to the capital could they remove the Emperor’s concerns and properly deal with this general who had brought disaster to the region.

Censor Xing had weathered the storms of officialdom for many years. Although his inability to tolerate any wrongdoing had kept him as merely a small seventh-rank surveillance censor, he understood these twists and turns clearly.

Being able to personally witness Xing Wuyang’s downfall and punishment was also his wish, so he returned Shao Mingyuan’s salute and said solemnly: “Xing Wuyang embezzled military funds and colluded with pirates, causing the people to live in misery and sparking civil unrest and military mutiny. Fortunately, with the Champion Marquis’s assistance, this official escaped danger. Fearing that this official would report his various evil deeds to His Majesty, Xing Wuyang directly rebelled. This official had no choice but to request the Champion Marquis to personally capture him and bring him to the capital to confess his crimes.”

After speaking, Censor Xing smiled faintly at Shao Mingyuan: “How does the Marquis find this official’s account?”

As a surveillance censor, he inherently possessed the authority to make decisions during sudden major incidents. By speaking this way, he completely cleared Shao Mingyuan of blame – it was excellent indeed.

Shao Mingyuan nodded with a smile: “Many thanks to Lord Xing.”

Censor Xing shook his head: “It should be this official thanking the Marquis. Xing Wuyang had become Fudong’s greatest disaster. Without the Marquis’s intervention, who knows when we could have brought him to justice – this official certainly wouldn’t have lived to see that day.”

The two men exchanged smiles, reaching a tacit understanding.

Censor Xing’s body was still somewhat weak, and before long, he felt tired and returned to rest.

Chen Guang had been holding back a belly full of questions. Seeing Censor Xing leave, he immediately poured them out like beans from a bamboo tube.

“General, so when you went back that time, it was to abduct Xing Wuyang! Hehe, then isn’t Fuxing City in complete chaos now?”

“It won’t be chaotic for now. The military mutiny occurred not long ago, so no matter how anxious Xing Wuyang’s people are, they don’t dare spread word of his disappearance. Otherwise, they won’t be able to suppress those who intend to resist Xing Wuyang. Fortunately, many people personally witnessed Xing Wuyang being wounded by a cold arrow the day we left the city, so it’s perfectly normal for him to stay behind closed doors to recover during this period.” Shao Mingyuan explained.

Chen Guang scratched his head: “In that case, General, didn’t you help him?”

Qiao Zhao interjected: “It’s good that there’s no chaos now. If we caused great turmoil in Fudong by kidnapping Xing Wuyang, it would be difficult to explain when we return to the capital. Moreover, if war breaks out in Fudong, the common people will suffer.”

Hearing Qiao Zhao’s explanation, Chen Guang immediately understood and looked at Shao Mingyuan with admiration: “The General is truly wise and mighty. This subordinate thought you shot that cold arrow just to escape in the chaos, but it turns out there was this deeper intention.”

Shao Mingyuan’s face warmed slightly as he quickly glanced at Qiao Zhao, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

Being praised by his subordinate in front of Zhaozhao made him quite happy.

Though Shao Mingyuan thought this inwardly, his expression remained serious: “Where do all these words come from? Your injury hasn’t fully healed yet – go rest early.”

“This subordinate has one last question. Didn’t Ye Luo leave with Young Master Chi and the others? How did he come back?”

“Go ask Ye Luo yourself.” Shao Mingyuan, annoyed that the young guard was interrupting his alone time with Qiao Zhao, said indifferently.

Chen Guang quietly pursed his lips and walked out.

The room quieted down, and Qiao Zhao smiled at Shao Mingyuan: “Fortunately, we didn’t take a single wrong step.”

Perhaps the only unexpected element was Jiang Yuanchao.

Shao Mingyuan had thought along the same lines as Qiao Zhao, his brow furrowing tightly: “Zhaozhao, I always feel that Jiang Yuanchao’s purpose for this journey is not simple.”